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Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup)
| next = }} Portugal v Morocco was a match which took place at the Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday 20 June 2018. Preview and teams's preparation Portugal have a fully-fit squad to choose from although Bruno Alves could be preferred to Jose Fonte in defence. Sporting Lisbon winger Bruno Fernandes underwhelmed on his World Cup debut against Spain and may be replaced by Gelson Martins or Joao Mario. Morocco have an injury crisis at right-back, with Nordin Amrabat ruled out with concussion following a clash of heads in the defeat to Iran. Regular right-back Nabil Dirar remains sidelined with a knee injury. One week in and this is already gearing up to be Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup. Arriving in Russia with a point to prove having scored just three times overall in three previous tournaments, he doubled that tally in one game against Spain. That Portugal got a draw from a match in which Spain were largely dominant was down almost solely to him. Aside from rubbing salt in the wounds of their Iberian rivals following the sacking of Spain coach Julen Lopetegui, Ronaldo's late equaliser puts Portugal in a strong position to qualify for the knockout stage if they beat Morocco, in just the second meeting between the two nations. However, a small but significant portion of history is on Morocco's side. They beat Portugal 3-1 in the group stage of the 1986 World Cup; it was Morocco's first ever win at the tournament and Portugal's only World Cup loss against African opposition. It is a feat the Atlas Lions need to repeat; a second loss of this tournament, coupled with a positive result in the game between Spain and Iran, and Morocco are out. Head to head Their only previous meeting came at the 1986 World Cup. Morocco's 3-1 victory was their first ever win in the tournament. Match Cristiano Ronaldo continued his sensational start to the World Cup with the winner as Portugal knocked Morocco out of the tournament. All eyes at the Luzhniki Stadium were on the Real Madrid star after his hat-trick in Portugal's opening game with Spain and, typically, he did not disappoint. It took the captain only four minutes to make his mark in the way Morocco had feared, diving to get on the end of a Joao Moutinho cross and planting an unstoppable header into the net. Ronaldo's goal put the European champions briefly top of Group B and extended his lead as the top scorer in Russia in the race for the Golden Boot. Spain's 1-0 win over Iran, means they top the group courtesy of having collected fewer disciplinary points than Portugal. Morocco, who last week failed in their bid to host the 2026 World Cup, became the first team to be eliminated from this one with one Group B game to go - but they did not go down without a fight. Backed by thousands of noisy fans, who packed one end of the ground, they created enough chances to earn at least a draw - and would have got something out of the game with better finishing. Too many of their shots flew wide, however, and the one time the North Africans did find the target with an effort of note, new Wolves keeper Rui Patricio produced a brilliant one-handed diving save to keep out Younes Belhanda's header. The North African nation, beaten 1-0 by Iran in their opening game, are playing at the World Cup for the first time in 20 years. Ronaldo has been the undoubted star of the first week of this tournament and he ensured he will stay in the headlines with another decisive contribution. He was the centre of attention from the moment his image flashed up on the huge screens, cheered by the Portugal fans and others who had travelled to Moscow solely to watch him - and jeered by the Morocco fans. The 33-year-old's performance was not as spectacular as the one he produced about Spain, but he again showed why his team rely upon him so heavily. Of Portugal's eight shots, he had six of them - including the one that mattered the most. Ronaldo's other contributions, other than the flicked pass that released Goncalo Guedes to force a fine stop from Munir Mohamedi, were more fitful, but the intelligence of his movement and sheer presence up front meant he remained a threat. There were no more magic moments, however, to the disappointment of the thousands in the crowd who recorded his two free-kicks from the edge of the area with their smartphones, only to see him smash them into Morocco's defensive wall. Portugal offered little else in the way of a threat, and defensively the number of problems Morocco caused them must be a concern for their coach Fernando Santos, with bigger tests likely ahead. But Ronaldo's Russian roadshow rolls into Saransk on Monday, and shows no sign of stopping. Details |goals2 = |stadium = Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow |attendance = 78,011 |referee = Mark Geiger (United States) }} |valign="top"| |valign="top" width="50%"| |} Group B Table |w=1 |d=1 |l=0 |gf=4 |ga=3 |bc=lightgreen}} |w=1 |d=0 |l=0 |gf=1 |ga=0|bc=lightgreen}} |w=0 |d=1 |l=0 |gf=3 |ga=3 }} |w=0 |d=0 |l=2 |gf=0 |ga=2}} |} Match Stats= {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |- !width=130|Overall !width=70|Portugal !width=70|Morocco |- !scope=row|Goals scored |1||0 |- !scope=row|Total shots |10||15 |- !scope=row|Shots on target |2||4 |- !scope=row|Ball possession |45%||55% |- !scope=row|Corner kicks |5||7 |- !scope=row|Fouls committed |19||23 |-| Images= Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).1.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).2.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).3.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).4.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).5.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).6.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).7.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).8.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).9.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).10.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).11.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).12.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).13.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).14.jpg Portugal v Morocco (2018 World Cup).15.jpg See also *2018 FIFA World Cup :*2018 FIFA World Cup Group B External links *Match report at BBC.co.uk Category:2018 FIFA World Cup Matches